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Vietnamese Coffee Cafes
While house sitting in Thao Dien in Ho Chi Minh City for 6 weeks, I had the pleasure of hunting out the perfect coffee shops. Not only did I get to look after 2 cute puppy dogs, but I was on the hunt for the best cafes in Saigon where I could escape the humidity and rain.
If you find yourself in Ho Chi Minh, a very friendly Digital Nomad city, here are some of the top coffee shops to visit.
Map of Ho Chi Minh City
Thao Dien – District 2 Coffee Shops
Just Coffee
Just Coffee became one of my favorite places to work. It has a very welcoming and friendly atmosphere, with a good food menu and fair trade coffee. The drink menu is fairly standard for Vietnam with hot or cold espresso options, hot or cold Vietnamese coffee, fruit juices, smoothies and tea.
Just Coffee serves, “high quality natural products that are fairly traded, which helps improve local people’s lives.”
The coffee shop is spacious with many different types of tables for group or solo work and couches for more casual conversation. There are plenty of power outlets and comfortable benches or chairs with backs to enjoy your time there.
The coffee shop is located on a quiet side street to the main street and has scooter parking. Prepare to be welcomed by the staff and feel right at home upon entering.
- Hours: Daily from 7am – 9pm
- Location: Số 18 Đường Số 38, Thảo Điền, Quận 2, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
- A/C: Yes, comfortable
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The Loop
The Loop, is a contemporary mediterranean cafe serving Thao Dien. If you are looking for really good and healthy food plus a good atmosphere for working this is the place to go. It has more of a cafe feel than a coffee shop with a mix of laptop workers, lunch goers and business meet-ers.
With most of the remote workers situated near the back wall, the restaurant provides extension cords to the main outlets so everyone has an opportunity to plugin. Despite this, the overall feel isn’t that of worker bees but of a relaxing, bright and enjoyable environment. They do a good job of catering to all types and still feeling balanced.
Located on the corner next to an international school, you will find many expats frequenting the cafe. It’s also near what I dubbed “expat corner”, an area of restuarants and shops mainly occupied by the expats in the area. This shouldn’t deter you from visiting but it is worth noting.
- Hours: Daily from 7am -9pm
- Location: 49 Thao Dien, District 2, HCMC
- A/C: Yes, comfortable
Saigon Bagel
Saigon Bagel is mainly a bagel shop, but a place that I frequented on the weekends. With a few single tables in the place, good New York style bagels and hot coffee it quickly became one of my favorites as well. My go-to order was the breakfast bagel and either a latte or Vietnamese Iced Coffee with milk.
Although it’s not a location that would typically attract remote workers, I found it an enjoyable place to work. This also means there aren’t many outlets so it’s definitely more of a place to make short visits around meal times.
Saigon bagel is located further down the main road after entering Thao Dien and down a side street a bit. Definitely one of the quieter options on the list, although, a bit warmer as it relies on it’s shade and open air concept.
- Hours: Daily 7am – 6pm
- Location Thao Dien: 38 Nguyen Cu, Thao Dien, District 2, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Location District 1: 224 Vo Van Kiet, D. 1 Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- A/C: No
The Coffee House
As one of the chain coffee houses in Vietnam, The Coffee House was always packed full of people on laptops. It made it challenging to find a table at times, but I always managed to do so. With only a display of sweets and bahn mis they are the most traditional of coffee shops on the list.
With a setup built for people to work or study, there are plenty of power outlets throughout. They also have a nice outdoor seating area on nice days. Otherwise, the A/C inside is very strong and I recommend having a jacket with you at all times.
Located right on a main street of Thao Dien you can’t miss it with all of the scooters outside and the large Coffee House sign at the entrance.
- Hours: Daily from 7am – 9pm
- Location: Various Districts
- A/C: Yes and a bit on the cold side
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Phin & Bean
Phin & Bean opened in District 2 in summer 2019 and is set in a large warehouse type building. The walk up to the main building is lined by trees and greenery and automatically transplants you out of Thao Dien.
The building itself is very modern with a mix of wood and metal as decorations with plenty of space for laptop bees, business meetings or family gatherings. They serve artisanal coffee along with teas, soft drinks, cakes and made to order pizza.
With a lot of natural light being let inside, the atmosphere is bright and cheery and the A/C is set to a cool temperature. The atmosphere is mainly chatter from the other guest instead of music. There are plenty of tables and places to sit and a good amount of power sockets to keep charged.
- Hours: Daily from 7:30am – 9pm
- Location District 2: 39 Xuan Thuy Phuong Thao Dien Quan 2 TP Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
- Location District 1: 20 Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai, Đa Kao, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
- A/C: Yes
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District 1 Coffee Shops
Old Compass Cafe
Tucked away from the main street and up 3 flights of stairs is the welcoming and cozy Old Compass Cafe. The staff are very friendly and the food was delicious. Steeped in a lot of history, they also offer Old Compass tours in the city many of which either start or end at the cafe.
Although small, I enjoyed my afternoon here. They have a couch for more casual gatherings and a mix of tall and short tables. Because the cafe is small it’s not an ideal place to sit and work for long stretches as well as the almost non-existent plugs. But if you are in the area and need a work through lunch option, it may be a great fit.
- Hours: Sun – Wed 8:30 am – 11pm; Fri – Sat 8:30 am to midnight
- Location: 3rd Floor, 63/11 Pasteur, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, HCMC (down the alley right next door to the Liberty Citypoint Hotel)
- A/C: Yes
Vietcetera – Update: Cafe is Closed
Vietcetera is a small coffee shop with a lot of personality. From the moment you walk through the door it’s quirkiness is on display. They are also one of the few places that serves Egg Coffee, which is partly why I made the trip across town to check it out.
The shop was very quiet with other remote workers typing away on their laptops. Along with their coffees they had a large selection of teas as well as a full menu. My only real complaint is the A/C was a bit too strong and I was cold the entire time I was there. However, it was a good atmosphere for focusing and plenty of power outlets for everyone there.
- Hours: Sun – Thurs 7:30 am – 9pm; Fri – Sat 7:30 am – 10 pm
- Location: 290 Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai, Phường Phạm Ngũ Lão, Quận 3, Hồ Chí Minh
- A/C: Yes
The Hive Villa Coworking
I loved working from The Hive. I visited both of the locations in Thao Dien during their “try out Tuesdays.”
Check out my walk through Thao Dien to the Hive Villa in this video!
The Hive Villa is the 2nd location in Thao Dien and I felt as if I had walked into a resort. The large pool and outdoor hut that served coffee, tea, and smoothies for purchase only added to the feeling. This location was much smaller, but not as busy which was nice.
The staff at both locations were extremely friendly and helpful and I enjoyed talking with them. And even though it was monsoon season I took advantage of sitting pool side during my breaks at the Hive. Which throughout the year hosts networking meetups, workshops, and social events.
The Hive Thao Dien Coworking
The original location, The Hive Thao Dien, is tucked away off the main road into a hideaway full of local shops and eating places. Upon discovering the the location, you automatically feel as if you’ve been let in on a little secret community.
The space is large with 3 floors and on a free Tuesday, absolutely packed. My friend I arrived in the afternoon and were almost unable to find a place to sit and work. There are 2 floors full of hot desks along with free coffee/tea and snacks for purchase.
The space itself was comfortable with wooden desks, comfortable chairs and a good level of noise to make you not feel alone but nothing loud or distracting.
- Hours: M – F 8am – 8 pm
- Location Thao Dien: 94 Xuan Thuy, District 2, Ho Chi Minh City
- Location District 1: 26 Huynh Khuong Ninh, Da Kao, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
- A/C: Yes
Ho Chi Minh City is a great location for Digital Nomads with so many different coffee shops and places to work from! If you have any other recommendations let me know and I’ll be sure to check them out next time I’m in Vietnam.
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A great helpful post. I’m travelling there next year and as a coffee lover always like to know where to go for the best coffee!
Have fun! You won’t have any trouble finding coffee there. 🙂